Student teams earn funding at Purdue New Venture Challenge
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The student-led startup companies behind a stroke-treatment catheter, a meal-plan app and a makeup palette for the visually impaired received a combined $18,500 in cash prizes during the New Venture Challenge hosted by Purdue Innovates Incubator.
Five finalists had five minutes to pitch their companies to investors at the Purdue Innovates Startup and Technology Expo at Purdue Memorial Union earlier this month. The finalists, which earlier also had developed business, marketing and financing plans, included Purdue University students and researchers and students from other universities.
“By taking part in the New Venture Challenge, Purdue students and their colleagues have strengthened their commitment to entrepreneurship and bringing solutions to worldwide challenges to the marketplace,” incubator director Justin Renfrow said in a university news release.
Emboa Medical won the first-place award of $10,000 for its stroke-treatment catheter for surgeons to increase blood clot removal rates. Emboa Medical also won the Crowd Favorite prize and $1,000. Team members include Purdue students Ángel Enríquez and Sergio Ruiz.
Winning second place and $5,000 was uChef, a mobile app that automatically generates personalized meal plans for students based on their budget and culinary preferences. Team members are Purdue students Arnaldo Castillo and Luis Paz.
Maytik won third place and $2,500 for its makeup palette that uses haptic and audio feedback to allow blind and visually impaired users to apply different shades of eye shadow. Team members are Purdue student Sejal Verma and Shreya Rathi of Ohio State University.
The 2024 New Venture Challenge began with 27 startups applying to the program. Submissions for the 2025 New Venture Challenge will begin in January 2025.